John D. Rockefeller

After leaving Grant Village on the afternoon of June 10, Amy and I drove further south towards the South Entrance of Yellowstone.  On our way to Grand Teton National Park we passed through the John D. Rockefeller Memorial Parkway.  It is quite a mouthful, but basically it connects the two parks and preserves the land between them.

Located at the heart of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the Rockefeller Parkway connects Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks. The late conservationist and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller, Jr. made significant contributions to several national parks including Grand Teton, Acadia, Great Smoky Mountains, and Virgin Islands. 

In 1972 Congress dedicated a 24,000-acre parcel of land as John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway to recognize his generosity and foresight. Congress also named the highway from the south boundary of Grand Teton to West Thumb in Yellowstone in honor of Rockefeller.

 The parkway provides a natural link between the two national parks and contains features characteristic of both areas. In the parkway, the Teton Range ramps down a gentle slope at its northern end, while rocks born of volcanic flows from Yellowstone line the Snake River and form outcrops scattered atop hills and ridges. 

Grand Teton National Park administers John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway.
--from NPS Grand Teton National Park Website, Rockefeller section

It wasn't too long of a drive through the area, but it was definitely interesting.  We saw snow a couple of times.

It was a cloudy day, so we didn't get a glimpse of the Teton range, but I wasn't too disappointed as we'd seen it a couple days before from the other side on our drive into Yellowstone.  Partway through we did stop at the Flagg Ranch Information Station, partly to see what was there (no exhibits) and to get a passport stamp.

There was a lodge of some sort there which we didn't explore, but we did venture into the information center where we picked up some information about the Tetons.

A little bit later we spotted some wildlife.  Can you tell what it is?

It was the first moose of the trip!  (and actually the only one we saw)

Before too long we crossed into the Grand Teton National Park.  I was glad we'd stopped where we had at Flagg Ranch since there was no North Entrance to the Tetons and we didn't have another opportunity to pick up brochures for quite a while.

~Matt